as in excellent
of the very best kind
a first-string rendition of the musical piece
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Recent Examples of first-string
Tustin’s first-string defense was just as overwhelming, holding the Vanguards to negative-16 yards in the first half while the offense built a 48-0 lead.
—
Dan Arritt, Oc Register, 18 Oct. 2025
Most importantly, many defensive special-teams rushers are first-string players, whereas the blockers tend to be second- and third-string players.
—J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
On a rest day for Bo Nix and much of the Broncos’ first-string crew, backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham, and a few key depth pieces, led the Broncos to a 27-7 beatdown of the Cardinals at Empower Field on Saturday night.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 17 Aug. 2025
That is an obvious but nevertheless tempting play with Burrow and the first-string offense in action.
—Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Aug. 2025
That has not kept Henderson from receiving snaps with Maye and the rest of the first-string offense, however.
—Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 27 July 2025
Young guys typically have to earn their way to first-string snaps.
—Jesse Newell, Kansas City Star, 26 July 2025
Breslow and his scouts stole a first-string catcher, Carlos Narvaez, from the Yankees, who’d had him in their minor league system since 2015.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 16 July 2025
Hudson has been practicing as the first-string left tackle all spring in Thomas’ absence.
—Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 17 June 2025
Dan Arritt, Oc Register, 18 Oct. 2025
Most importantly, many defensive special-teams rushers are first-string players, whereas the blockers tend to be second- and third-string players.
—J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
On a rest day for Bo Nix and much of the Broncos’ first-string crew, backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham, and a few key depth pieces, led the Broncos to a 27-7 beatdown of the Cardinals at Empower Field on Saturday night.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 17 Aug. 2025
That is an obvious but nevertheless tempting play with Burrow and the first-string offense in action.
—Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Aug. 2025
That has not kept Henderson from receiving snaps with Maye and the rest of the first-string offense, however.
—Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 27 July 2025
Young guys typically have to earn their way to first-string snaps.
—Jesse Newell, Kansas City Star, 26 July 2025
Breslow and his scouts stole a first-string catcher, Carlos Narvaez, from the Yankees, who’d had him in their minor league system since 2015.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 16 July 2025
Hudson has been practicing as the first-string left tackle all spring in Thomas’ absence.
—Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 17 June 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for first-string
Adjective
-
Thus far, Arsenal’s excellent form has relegated the injuries to a subplot.—
James McNicholas,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
-
The carbon nanofiber provides mechanical stability, abundant pore channels, and excellent electrolyte wettability, while the cobalt sites catalyze the adsorption and conversion of polysulfides.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The scene feels routine, set by a regular who prefers a late-afternoon arrival to enjoy the peace of a restaurant resetting itself between prime mealtimes.—
David Canfield,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Advantages of Spring Rose Planting For many types of plants, spring is the prime planting season.—
Andy Wilcox,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Shaheed is a terrific deep threat who will absolutely provide quarterback Sam Darnold with another dependable option in the aerial attack and will make the Seahawks' offense that much more dangerous.—
Matthew Schmidt,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
-
The Montana ski area is known for being a terrific spring-skiing spot, with the season’s best conditions coming in March and April.—
Lydia Price,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The Vikings had another stellar performance under the direction of defensive coordinator Brian Flores, finishing second in red zone touchdown rate and sack percentage and third in the league in yards allowed.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
6 Jan. 2026
-
Available in four versatile colors—as well as a women’s straight-leg version—Free Fly has everyone covered with this stellar, do-it-all travel pant.—
Harry Spampinato,
Travel + Leisure,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The guest capacity of 3,246 feels delightfully low considering the mind-blowing variety of venues, including nine superb specialty restaurants (love a good steakhouse at sea) and seven that are winners even without an upcharge.—
David Dickstein,
Oc Register,
31 Dec. 2025
-
The Sofia, by Vagabond Haven, is a superb example of clever space-saving design.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
28 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
WeRide is a member of this year’s Future 50, Fortune’s annual ranking of companies with the greatest potential for growth.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
-
After looking over the latest update from Jim Bowden, the odds of Bregman staying with the Red Sox are not looking too great currently.—
Drew VonScio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The Christos honored their promise by gifting me with a wonderful collage in addition to my one-dollar paycheck.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
-
That scene was so incredibly awkward… and wonderful.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Music lovers should head to see the Bluegrass Band art piece in East Bend, and the square in Yadkinville featuring Carolina Pines is particularly lovely.—
Jennifer Prince,
Southern Living,
7 Nov. 2025
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In between performances, while the crew was breaking down and setting up on stage, there was a lovely MC keeping the crowd entertained.—
Katie Campione,
Deadline,
6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“First-string.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/first-string. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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